Year Number Five
by eight-cent-plantation
Summary: PG-13 because it is. Not that bad though. It's a long one chapter James/Lily fic with a whole lot of Sirius and Remus in it. Please review! ::Full Summary In My Profile::


A/N: Hey. This is a one chapter fic that covers year number five...hence the title. I wrote it a LONG time ago and I found the disk and did a little correcting and I have the sixth and seventh years coming. This is actually the first fic I wrote on James and Lily. One more thing, we're going to play pretend and pretend that they became anamagi in their fourth year that way Peter isn't in this story, okay? Cool. Please review.  
  
  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns all the Harry Potter stuff. I'm just borrowing it.  
  
  
  
  
  
Blame Canada! Blame Canada! It seems that everthing's gone wrong since Canada came along  
  
Blame Canada! Blame Canada! They're not even a real country anyway  
  
-Blame Canada, Mothers Against Canada (South Park, Bigger, Longer, and Uncut)  
  
  
  
  
  
Year Number Five  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
James Potter was a fifteen year old wizard. He had messy, jet black hair and chocolate brown eyes. He lived in a mansion near the village of Godric's Hollow. James was, today, going back to the wizarding school, Hogwarts. He couldn't wait.  
  
"Master James, it is time to get up," a servant said. "You have over slept an hour already."  
  
James rolled over and put his covers over his head.   
  
"Master James, you have only one hour to get to Platform Nine and Three Quarters."  
  
James popped up quickly at this statement and ran for the shower. He was going to miss the train!  
  
He ran down the stairs dressed in muggle clothes...his mother was at the door.  
  
"James, be good this year, your trunk is in the car. Stevens is taking you to Kings Cross. Your father is working and I'm, er, busy today. See you at Christmas."   
  
With that his mom disapperated. James just stood there. He wasn't surprised, but he was hurt nonetheless. His parents hadn't seen him to Kings Cross since his first year and they never picked him up either.  
  
  
  
  
  
At about half past ten they arrived at Kings Cross, the limo being a magical car. James said good bye to Stevens and went into the food court to buy a Cinnamon Bun with his luggage on a trolley.   
  
At a quarter to eleven he decided that he should go get the Marauders' compartment. He turned his trolley to face the barrier between platforms nine and ten. He was about to go when someone slammed into him from behind. He didn't fall, but he did sway quite a bit.  
  
"Guess who?"  
  
"Hmm, could it be a Miss Lily Evans back from a summer holiday in Italy?"  
  
"It could be," she said. They both laughed. "Give me a piggyback, Jamie."  
  
"Alright, hook your trolley with your foot," he instructed  
  
She did what he said and James started walking towards the platform.  
  
When they passed through the barrier she jumped off.  
  
"Thanks, Prongs," she said.   
  
"You are quite welcome, my good lady," he said with a bow. "Shall we?"  
  
"We shall."  
  
They stored their luggage in the train and went off to their claimed compartment. When they got there they found their two friends, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin.  
  
"SIRIUS!" Lily said excitedly. She jumped on to him and gave him a hug. Sirius had neat brown hair and baby blue eyes.  
  
"Hey, Lils, nice to see you to and all., but I'd like to inhale for a second."  
  
Remus, James, and Lily laughed while Sirius rubbed his neck.  
  
"How was Italy?" Remus asked. He had sandy brown hair and tired-looking, light gray eyes.  
  
"It was fun," she said, plopping on Sirius' lap, "but I missed you guys so much!"  
  
Sirius and Lily were the best of friends. They knew everything about each other, and I mean everything. They had lived across the street from each other since they were little. Lily and the guys were all really good friends though. Lily and Remus were the brains of their little group and Sirius and James could pull anything off, which was why the group is known as the best pranksters ever to grace the halls of Hogwarts...The Marauders.  
  
"Right down to business, okay?" James said as they all sat down. "What's the first prank of the year?"  
  
"Well, as tradition has it, it's on the Slytherins," said Sirius.  
  
"Definitely," Lily agreed, "but what to do…"  
  
After a few moments, Remus spoke up.  
  
"I know," said Remus with an evil grin on his face. "Since we all excel in different areas, we'll use that to our advantage. Lily can charm them to sing and dance to a song. Sirius can make the music. James can transfigure their clothes into Gryffindor Quidditch robes. And I will use these ultra dung bombs. I can make them invisible and hide them under the table."  
  
"That's a great idea!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"I'll go get my invisibility cloak," said James.  
  
He got up and slid the compartment door shut behind him.  
  
"I'm going with him, I need to see if he has my Pro Prankster book."  
  
Sirius left behind James.  
  
"How was your summer, Moony?" Lily asked, she moved into the seat directly across from him.  
  
"Not too bad," Remus said. "The only bad parts were the full moons, other than that it was good."  
  
"Every time I saw the moon, I thought of you, dear Moony," Lily said. "Next summer we must get together. Italy was fun but two months with my sister is two months too much."  
  
"I'll have you over whenever the moon is not full," Remus said.  
  
He smiled at her.   
  
"Thanks, Remy."  
  
"Got it," James came in. "You got the dung bombs?"  
  
"Course I do, James," said Remus.  
  
"Good, now, Lily, can you time them to make them go off at a certain time?"  
  
"Of course, duh, I the charms master, Jamie."  
  
Lily smiled.  
  
"Right, now, what song shall they sing and dance to?" Remus asked.  
  
"How about some dumb pop song?" Lily suggested.  
  
"Yeah!" said Sirius. "I know, that Bye Bye Bye song that *NSTINK sings."  
  
They all agreed. After the details had been hammered out they played Exploding Snap and Wizards Chess. Remus won at chess and Lily at Exploding Snap.  
  
  
  
  
  
The train started to slow down and eventually stopped. Lily, James, and Remus had to help Hagrid get all of the first years organized since they were the only new prefects who cared, so Sirius saved them a carriage.  
  
  
  
  
  
The Great Hall was noisy as always.  
  
The Marauders sat down in their usual seats.  
  
"Where's Peter?" Lily asked, just noticing that their other friend, Peter Pettigrew, was not present.  
  
"Oh, yeah," Sirius said. "He owled me, his mother wants him home schooled."  
  
"Sucks for him," said Remus.   
  
"Yeah, now I get his seat though!" Lily crawled under the table and popped back up next to James. No one knew it, but both James and Lily were very happy with this.   
  
A few Hufflepuff fifth years came in. They were part of James' fan club and Lily's hate club.  
  
Lily didn't know it, but she was one of the most hated people in the school. (A/N: Lily's pretty thick, huh?) She was best friends with Sirius Black, and really good friends with James and Remus. No one cared, but she was sort of friends with Peter too.  
  
"Hey, Jamie," one of the dumber looking ones said.  
  
"Er, hi, er, Valerie?" James said, not really caring.  
  
"It's Jenny, actually."  
  
"Yeah, whatever," James said. He turned back to Lily and continued their conversation.  
  
The girls all gave Lily venomous looks and walked away. Sirius looked ready to kill. He acted as if he were Lily's big brother. Remus gave him a look that plainly said 'drop it' and he did, reluctantly that is.  
  
The sorting started not too long afterwards.   
  
  
  
  
  
"I'm hungry," Sirius moaned.  
  
"Zarther, Nancy."  
  
"HUFFLEPUFF!"  
  
"That brings the total to six new admirers this year, James," Lily teased.  
  
"Oh shut up," James said. He hated being the center of attention in the Hufflepuff house.  
  
"Can I have your attention please...thank you." Dumbledore was standing. "Welcome to another fine year at Hogwarts. I have only two things to say. Firstly, will the first years, Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, Mr. Lupin, and Miss Evans please note that the Forbidden Forest is *forbidden*." Most people laughed at this statement "Secondly dig in."  
  
"HERE HERE, SIR!" Sirius shouted as the food appeared. He did indeed dig in.   
  
The four finished up quickly. Remus pretended to drop his fork. When he ducked down only the Marauders noticed that he didn't come back up. Five minutes later he was back.  
  
"Phase one complete?" James asked.  
  
Remus nodded. "Lils, Sirius, you're up."  
  
Lily cast her charm and Sirius muttered his spell. NSYNC's Bye Bye Bye started to play and the Slytherins were dancing and singing along.   
  
"And phase three…" James aimed his wand and said, "Ballerinas...much better than Quidditch robes!" The Slytherins were suddenly in pink ballerina outfits. The hall was rolling on the floor with laughter. Even McGonagall let out a slight giggle.  
  
"Well then," Dumbledore said. "Do I really need to say it?"  
  
"No, sir," Sirius yelled.  
  
"See you in your office," James shouted.  
  
The hall burst into fresh waves of laughter and Lily and the boys made their way to the headmaster's office.  
  
They ended up with a mere one nights detention with Hagrid. Those detentions usually resulted in sitting in front of the fire and drinking tea with Hagrid. So they didn't mind.  
  
  
  
  
  
The annual Halloween prank found Severus Snape of Slytherin reciting poetry and acting out Romeo and Juliet.  
  
"Two detentions with Hagrid and fifty points from Gryffindor." Dumbledore dismissed them and they made their way to bed laughing like hyenas.  
  
"Does he not realize that we don't care about detentions anymore?" Lily asked as they entered the Gryffindor Common Room.  
  
"I guess not," said Sirius.  
  
  
  
  
  
In their detentions, all they did was hang around in Hagrid's house for a few hours and talk with him.  
  
  
  
  
  
At lunch one November afternoon, McGonagall made her way towards the Marauders.  
  
"We were in the Tower all last night, we didn't do it, I swear!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Calm down, Mr. Black," said McGonagall. "Lily, Professor Dumbledore wants to see you in his office after you're done with your lunch."  
  
Lily nodded.  
  
"Sure, professor," she said.  
  
Lily turned back to the boys and started up the conversation they were having before McGonagall came over.  
  
"I'll meet you by the lake," she said when she finished lunch.   
  
She then left for Dumbledore's office.  
  
  
  
  
  
The three guys wondered aimlessly around the grounds before they flopped down beside the lake. They talked about Quidditch and other guy stuff for a few hours.   
  
Before they knew it they needed to go back in for dinner.  
  
"Wonder where Lily went," said Sirius. "She never came out."  
  
James and Remus shrugged.   
  
They checked for her in the Great Hall, but she wasn't there.  
  
James ate quickly and then stood up.  
  
"I'm going to go look for her, see you in the Tower, okay?"  
  
Sirius and Remus nodded and James left.  
  
James went first to the Gryffindor common room. Lily wasn't in there, so he went up to her dormitory. She wasn't in there either. He was starting to get a little worried.  
  
He decided to go get the Marauder's Map and see where she was. He dashed up to his dorm, the light was on in the bathroom.  
  
James frowned, he Sirius and Remus were the only ones who occupied this dorm besides him. He opened the door and what he saw made his heart stop.  
  
Lily was on the floor. There was a piece of paper next to her and her wrists were bleeding. She was unconscious.  
  
Springing to action, James grabbed the sheet off of his bed and tore it into smaller pieces. He used these to bandage Lily's wrists. He picked Lily up. He then headed for the hospital wing, running as fast as he could, praying that he was not too late.  
  
  
  
  
  
Sirius and Remus walked together up to Gryffindor Tower.   
  
"Where did James go?" Sirius asked Remus.  
  
"How am I supposed to know?" Remus said. "I do wonder where they both are though, yeah."  
  
"Password?" the Fat Lady asked.  
  
"Lions."  
  
The portrait opened. One look around and they could tell neither James or Lily were in the common room. Both of them had hair that stood out, James' messy black mop, and Lily's flame red hair.  
  
"Maybe they're in the dorms?" Remus suggested.  
  
Sirius shrugged and said, "I'll check our dorm."  
  
"I'll check Lily's," said Remus.  
  
Sirius climbed the steps to the fifth year boys' dorm. He pushed the door open to see the bathroom door ajar with the light on.  
  
"Prongs? That you?" he asked.   
  
No answer.  
  
He walked towards the door and saw the pool of blood that James had encountered not too long ago. He stooped low and picked up the paper that was laying on the floor.  
  
"Padfoot, I can't find them. Lily's not in her dorm and-" Remus stopped when he saw the bathroom. "What the hell?"  
  
Sirius handed him the tearstained piece of paper.  
  
*Lily,  
  
I HATE YOU! MUM AND DAD'S DEATH IS ALL YOUR FAULT YOU STUPID BITCH! IT IS ALL YOUR FAULT! I HOPE YOU BURN IN HELL!   
  
-ME  
  
P.S.- NO FUNERAL FOR YOU!*  
  
(A/N: No soup for you! LoL, best episode of a T.V. show ever...the soup nazi episode...LoL!)  
  
"Petunia," Remus breathed. "Damn."  
  
"We have to get to the hospital wing, that's where James'll probably be."  
  
With that Sirius ran out the door, Remus on his heels.  
  
  
  
  
  
James was sitting in an armchair next to Lily's bed. She was still unconscious. He heard a knock on the locked door. It was after visiting hours, but James refused to leave, so Madame Pomfrey gave up and let him stay.  
  
He wondered who dare come in after visiting hours.  
  
"Black, Remus, go back to your dormitories, you may see her tomorrow!" Madame Pomfrey hollered.  
  
"Please, Madame Pomfrey! Pretty please!" Sirius begged.  
  
"No! Go back to your dorms!" she snapped.  
  
"Okay," came Remus' unsteady voice. James was sure that he was fighting back tears. "Can you give this to James please, Madame Pomfrey?"  
  
Madame Pomfrey had always liked Remus. She cracked a small smile and said, "Of course, dear. Now please, come back in the morning."  
  
James sat up as Madame Pomfrey approached. "Sirius and Remus wanted me to give this to you," she said.  
  
"Thanks, Madame Pomfrey."  
  
James read the note. Fury like he had never felt before in his life was coursing through his veins. His eyes reduced to slits and he looked beyond pissed.  
  
"Madame Pomfrey, please let me know if Lily wakes up tonight. I have something to take care of."  
  
"Sure, James," the nurse said. She glanced up at him and said, "James? What's wrong?"  
  
James handed her the note and walked out of the wing. After reading the note Madame Pomfrey sent it to Dumbledore straight away and wrote on it that he should talk to James as soon as humanly possible.  
  
  
  
  
  
As he was passing Dumbledore's office on his way to the owlry, James was stopped by the headmaster.  
  
"James, can I speak to you in my office?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, sir." James followed Dumbledore into his office.  
  
"Now, James, I know that you are probably mad at the note that Lily's sister wrote, and you have every right to be, but you should not do anything to harm this girl. Understood?"  
  
James was silent.   
  
"James, is that clear?"  
  
"I can't just let her get away with that!" James suddenly exclaimed. "Lily nearly died because of what that bi-sorry-I mean because of what that *girl* wrote in that letter!"  
  
"James, I know that it is hard to stay on the sidelines," Dumbledore said. "But you must. If you do anything to seriously injure this girl you could get arrested."  
  
"What if I didn't injure her?" James asked slowly after a minute of thinking.  
  
"What do you mean?" Dumbledore asked suspiciously.  
  
"What if some charmed dungbombs just *happened* to slip into a large envelope and just *happened* to be picked up by an owl that just *happened* to be on it's way to Lily's house?" James asked innocently.  
  
"Off the records, I wouldn't mind," Dumbledore said with a smile. "However, I did not say that and you never told me about it, right?"  
  
"Yes, sir," said James, standing up. "If you'll excuse me, sir, I have a few owls to send."  
  
"James, one dung bomb," Dumbledore said.   
  
"I know, sir, but I need to write my parents about Christmas vacation. Good night, Professor."  
  
"Good night, James."  
  
Dumbledore sighed.  
  
*Perhaps he is as immature as we all think, but his heart's in the right place.*  
  
With that thought Dumbledore went to get some hot chocolate before going to sleep.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Sirius, Remus, get that jumbo sized bag of ultra dungbombs."  
  
"Why?" Remus asked.  
  
"We're charming them and sending them off to little Miss Petunia," James said with an evil grin.  
  
"I love the way you think, Prongs. You are a genius!" Sirius exclaimed. He pulled out a humungous bag of ultra dungbombs from under his bed.  
  
James charmed them to shrink. Then he charmed them so that when the envelope was opened, they would return to normal size and go off.  
  
He then got some parchment and wrote a letter to his parents.  
  
*Dear Mom and Dad,  
  
I need to ask you something.  
  
Remember Lily? Well, her parents died. I want to invite her to stay for the Christmas holidays along with Remus and Sirius, only she'd be there the whole two weeks, not just the last one.  
  
Please say yes, we can't leave her at Hogwarts by herself for the holidays for some reasons that I really can't discuss right now.  
  
-James*  
  
"Who's that other letter going to, James?" Remus asked after two owls took flight.  
  
"My parents," James said. "I've asked them if I an invite Lily over for Christmas."  
  
"Cool," said Sirius. "I was about to stay here with her for the holidays, now we can all go over Jamie's house."  
  
"Calm yourself, Si," James said.   
  
The next morning the boys woke earlier than they would normally on a Sunday. They rushed down to breakfast.  
  
"Are they on time for breakfast on a Sunday, Dumbledore?" McGonagall asked, staring at Sirius, James, and Remus.  
  
Dumbledore explained to her what had happened the previous night. McGonagall was, for once, speechless.  
  
After a quick egg sandwich, the boys rushed to the hospital wing.  
  
"Hello, boys," Madame Pomfrey greeted. "She woke up about an hour ago, but she won't eat anything. Maybe you three can get her to eat something."  
  
They all nodded and entered the infirmary.  
  
"LILY!" Sirius half-shouted. "Thank God!"  
  
He hugged her, followed by Remus, then James. When James pulled back he saw that she was crying. He wiped the tears with his finger and sat down next to her on the bed.  
  
"Do you want to talk about it, Lils?" he asked quietly.  
  
She nodded.   
  
"I'm sorry, guys. It's just tha-"  
  
"No, Lily," Sirius cut in.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"It's not your fault, therefore, you are not going to apologize," Remus answered.   
  
"Yeah," James agreed. "Petunia shouldn't have pinned the blame on you. It's not your fault."  
  
"I guess you found the note then," Lily said, hanging her head.  
  
"Yeah, we did," said James. He stooped his head down so he could make eye contact with her. "And we took care of it, too."  
  
"What?" she exclaimed. Her head snapped up and her gaze rested on Sirius. "What did you do, Sirius?"  
  
"All James' idea, I swear!" Sirius said.  
  
"James…"  
  
"We sent her a jumbo sized bag of ultra dungbombs that are set to go off when the package is opened. We made it look like muggle mail too, so she'll get it!" James explained.  
  
"Is that it, you didn't hurt her or anything, right?"  
  
"Dumbledore wouldn't let me, so, no."   
  
James smiled at her.  
  
"Lily, why don't you eat some of this?" Remus said, sitting down on the other side of her and gesturing at the food. "I just had some downstairs and it is quite good."  
  
Lily smiled and said, "Madame Pomfrey wants you guys to try and get me to eat."  
  
"You're smarter than you let on," Sirius teased.  
  
"Now, are you going to eat or does Remus have to hold you down while I force you to eat it?" James asked.  
  
"As tempting as that sounds, I think I'll eat on my on, thanks."  
  
Lily made a fairly quick recovery and was back in the Tower within a few days. James was making sure that she was very comfortable at all times and she was grateful for this.  
  
  
  
  
  
Quidditch season was approaching. Lily wasn't aloud in the air for a few months, so she took the job of co-manager until she could fly again.   
  
James was working the team hard for the first match of the season against Slytherin...of course Gryffindor won.  
  
  
  
"PARTY IN THE COMMON ROOM!" Sirius shouted.   
  
"Lils, want a piggy back?"  
  
"Of course, my noble steed."   
  
Lily jumped onto James' back and they headed for the common room. Once again, the entire female population (minus any Slytherins) was giving Lily death glares.  
  
  
  
  
  
The party lasted into the wee hours of the morning.   
  
James and Lily were cleaning up. They were the only ones besides Remus that weren't drunk, but the full moon was approaching and he felt sick, so they let him go up to bed.  
  
"Hey, Lils?" James said.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I was wondering if you wanted to come to my house for the Christmas holidays?"   
  
James hadn't gotten a reply from his mom or dad yet, but he hadn't expected one anyway.  
  
Lily smiled.   
  
"I'd love to, Prongs, thank you."  
  
"Er, and, Lily?" James asked. He had butterflies in his stomach, but swore that they were bats.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
James gulped. His throat was suddenly *very* dry.   
  
It was now or never, they were alone, no one would hear.   
  
"James?"  
  
"IluvyaLily."  
  
"What'd you say? I couldn't understand you."  
  
James gulped again.   
  
"I love you, Lily."   
  
He bit his lip, waiting for a response.  
  
Lily smiled at him.   
  
"Do you mean like how Sirius loves me, or do you mean that you want to go out with me?" she teased. She knew what he meant, but teasing was always fun.  
  
"I want to go out with you," James replied at once. His palms were starting to sweat. "I have loved you, ever since I saw you on the train in first year, Lily. Even if you said right now that you didn't love me the way I love you, I would still love you."  
  
  
  
Lily moved closer to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you too, James. I really do."  
  
She kissed him.  
  
James smiled a big smile. Lily did as well.   
  
They finished cleaning up and sat down on the couch. They talked about pranks, among other things, before Lily finally fell asleep on James at around five thirty. He didn't have the strength to move, so he just gave in to the waves of tiredness washing over him and fell asleep. Luckily, it was a Sunday morning and everyone got up late, after James and Lily, that is. Besides, they were all hung over.  
  
  
  
After a quick shower and getting dressed, James woke Sirius up with a blast of cold water out of his wand before gently shaking Remus awake.  
  
  
  
"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU, JAMES!" Sirius shouted while Remus and James shook with laughter.  
  
"Full moon tonight," Remus said.  
  
"We'll be there buddy, don't worry," Sirius said.  
  
"How? No one can touch the knot."  
  
  
  
"Told you that you should have let me become an animagus too," Lily said entering the dorm.  
  
"Yeah, we should have, but we didn't," said Sirius.  
  
  
  
"But we can," said James slowly. "Still got the recipe, Rem?"  
  
"Yeah, I do."  
  
"Lets get to work then. Sirius, take the invisibility cloak and go get the ingredients from the potions room, Lily, get ready to change into an animal I guess."   
  
James got up and took his extra cauldron out of the closet.  
  
Remus was fishing through his folders for the recipe to the animagus potion and Lily was thinking about what kind of animal she wanted to be.  
  
  
  
  
  
The potion took a short time to make because the boys had done it before. By five o'clock, Remus had to go to the nurse, it was almost time for him to change.  
  
  
  
  
  
Finally, at around eight o'clock, "Lils, it's finished!"  
  
Lily followed her best friend into the bathroom and he locked the door, just in case.   
  
"Now, did you pick a considerably small animal to change into?" James asked.  
  
"Yeah, I think I'll become a cat," Lily said.  
  
"Much better than Pete's choice of the little gray rat," Sirius said with a laugh.  
  
James nodded and said to Lily, "Okay, Lils, think about the cat that you want to become and then drink this."   
  
He handed her a really big goblet of purple oozing liquid.   
  
Lily looked at them doubtfully.   
  
"Lils, just hold your nose and drink," Sirius said. "Trust me. We both drank it and we're fine."  
  
"Oh, alright. I'll do it for Remy."  
  
She thought hard. *Okay, I want to become a cat. Yellowish fur, maybe...yeah, yellowish fur, cute face…okay, here goes nothing.* She drank the potion down as fast as she could.  
  
There was a puff of purple smoke. Lily was a cat. She purred and slipped in between the two boys' legs. Sirius laughed and stooped down to pick her up.   
  
Lily jumped out of Sirius' arms and into James'.  
  
"Okay, Lils," Sirius said, "to turn back just think about being a human again basically."  
  
Lily thought about being human again and it worked. She was human again. James put her down and clapped. "Bravo."  
  
"Thank you, Mr. Potter."  
  
She stood on her tipey toes and planted a kiss on his lips.   
  
"Whoa, and when did this happen?" Sirius asked, crossing his arms and tapping one foot. "I, as the best friend, have a right to know."  
  
Lily smiled mischievously and James said, "Nothing much to tell. I just confessed my undying and unconditional love for Lily and she kissed me like I have never been kissed before." He said this in an offhand tone.  
  
Sirius' jaw dropped.   
  
"You mean, you're his girlfriend?" he asked Lily.  
  
"Yeah," Lily said, just as offhandedly as James.  
  
Sirius smiled. "James Anthony Potter, one bad move and I will beat your head in, despite the fact that you're my friend."  
  
James saluted Sirius. "Yes, sir, Mr. Black sir!" he said.  
  
"Good, now move out!" James turned. "Left, left, left right left!"  
  
Lily laughed.   
  
"You tell him, Si," she said. "Lets go grab some dinner before we go out."  
  
The three of them went down to the kitchens and the house elves happily supplied the with sandwiches and pie. After their quick dinner they ran back up to the boys' dorm to get James' invisibility cloak.   
  
Under the cover of the cloak, Lily, James, and Sirius crept out of the castle and towards the Whomping Willow. Lily transformed first and touched the knot that froze the tree. James and Sirius slid down after her before transforming and setting off at a run.  
  
  
  
  
  
The next morning at breakfast, the Marauders slipped in about twenty minutes late. No one really noticed, and if they did they didn't care.  
  
They ate a hurried breakfast before departing for Transfiguration.  
  
*What's our big 'Beginning of December Prank' going to be this year?-Sirius  
  
I don't know, I can't think of anything that we haven't done yet…-James  
  
Well, boys, I have an idea.-Lily  
  
TELL ME!!!-Sirius  
  
Yeah, TELL ME!!!-James*  
  
  
  
"Potter, Evans, Black! PAY ATTENTION!" Professor McGonagall shouted.  
  
"Sorry, Professor," Lily said. McGonagall nodded and continued with the notes on the board.  
  
*Okay, we can make Snape a girl...a Hufflepuff type girl.-Lily  
  
That's brilliant!-Sirius and James  
  
When do we do it?-Lily  
  
When Remus is healthy enough to do some serious magic.-James  
  
Cool.-Lily*  
  
The bell rang.  
  
"Agreed?" James said.  
  
"You bet!" Sirius smiled.  
  
"Of course, duh, it was my idea."   
  
They laughed and walked out.  
  
Remus was back and feeling better on Tuesday evening. The three filled him in on the prank they were going to play on Snape.  
  
"Are you three insane?" he said with a gasped. "What if he gets stuck? That's *hard* magic!"  
  
"But, Rem-" James began.  
  
"I will not allow you to do this, guys, I'll go to Dumbledore. This is completely insane."  
  
"But-"  
  
"No, Si," Lily said. "If Remus says it's a bad idea, then it isn't going to be done."  
  
The other two boys nodded dejectedly. "Thank you." said Remus.  
  
"Next time," Lily mouthed at the other two from behind Remus.  
  
They went down to the common room. James and Lily cuddled up on the couch while Remus and Sirius started placing bets on the wizards chess game they were about to play.  
  
"And when did this happen?" Remus asked, pointing at Lily and James.  
  
"Quidditch match party," Lily said, smiling.  
  
"Very nice," Remus said. "Okay, Padfoot, the winner gets five galleons three ultra dung bombs, a prank book, two sickles, a deck of muggle playing cards, two liquorish wands, and the loser takes off their pants."  
  
  
  
They shook hands and started up the match. The two played fiercely for a long while. Lily and James sat together on the couch watching them, James absentmindedly running his fingers through Lily's flaming red hair.  
  
As this was going on someone was watching the couple on the couch.   
  
"Hey, Kelly," the girl said. "Look at James and that little slut on the couch."  
  
"What the hell?" Kelly turned and saw the two of them snuggling together and decided that she would have a talk with a certain Lily Evans that night.  
  
"I WIN!" Sirius shouted. "FORK IT OVER, REMUS! NOW!"  
  
"Sirius, not in the common room," Remus hissed.  
  
"Yes, in the common room, take 'em off!" Sirius was still talking quite loudly and people were staring at them.  
  
Remus looked around for a rescue, but James was smiling at him and Lily was shaking with silent laughter. He stood up and started to unbutton his pants.   
  
"Stand on the couch, Rem, they can't see in the back."  
  
Remus grumbled as he got un to the couch. He took off his belt and unbuttoned his pants. When they were off he handed them to Sirius and casually made his way back up to the dorm to go to bed. Sirius followed, he wanted his winnings.  
  
The common room buzzed with chatter about what Remus had just done as everyone filtered up the staircases. James planted a kiss on Lily's lips. When they parted they hugged each other and went up to their respective dorms.  
  
Kelly got up and made her way up to her dormitory, followed by her, well, follower, Lindsay Lapps.  
  
"What the hell is going on between you and James Potter, Evans?" Kelly hissed in Lily's ear.  
  
"What?" Lily said, nonchalantly, "He's my boyfriend."  
  
"Why would he fall for a stupid idiot like you?" Lindsay said nastily.  
  
"What's your problem?" Lily asked raising one eyebrow.  
  
"We're not the one's with the problem, Evans," Kelly said. "You're the one with the problem. Stay away from James, he's mine."  
  
Lily didn't that sort of shit from anyone. Sirius had made her take some anger management classes in the past, but it was still all she could do not to hit Kelly.  
  
"Don't you mean he's your *ex*? Because last time I checked, *he* broke up with *you* because you're a controlling bitch." Lily was talking through clenched teeth. *Remember the classes...* she thought to herself.  
  
  
  
Kelly lost it and smacked Lily. Lily, in turn, snapped and boxed Kelly square in the nose. Kelly stumbled back an looked horrified. "Get out of my room!" she said. Her nose was bleeding and she was talking all funny. (A/N: Kind of like when your nose is stuffy)  
  
  
  
"Hey! This is my room too, and I'm not going anywhere!" Lily said.  
  
"Exilio!" Lindsay said. Lily's trunk flew out of the room.  
  
Lily lost her temper with Lindsay and hit her as well. She then left in a huff. She levitated her stuff and it followed her to the fifth year boys' dorm.   
  
She knocked.  
  
"Yeah?" Remus called.  
  
"It's me!" Lily said back.  
  
"Come on in!" Remus said.  
  
Lily opened the door and entered the messy dormitory. "What's up, Lils?" Sirius asked her.  
  
"Kelly and Lindsay were getting in my face because I'm with James and they kicked me out," Lily explained.  
  
"Sorry, Lils," James said. "You need to crash here?"  
  
"No," Lily said. "I just wanted to keep my stuff in here. I'll go crash on the couch downstairs."  
  
"I'll join you, Lily," Sirius said, grabbing his blanket and pillow.   
  
"Me, as well," Remus said, doing the same. "You never know what those two will do to you."  
  
"I'll be right there, let me grab the alarm clock," James said.   
  
Lily smiled as she walked over to the closet to grab the spare blanket and pillows. "Thanks, guys. I love sleepovers!"  
  
  
  
  
  
Before they knew it Christmas was upon them.   
  
They all started to shop for presents and pack up their things to go home.   
  
For the first week leading up to Christmas, Remus and Sirius were going home and Lily and James would be at James' mansion. And in the second week, Remus and Sirius would be over at James' place.  
  
"How long until we reach Platform nine and three quarters, Si?" Lily asked. "I am bored. With a capital 'B', actually!"  
  
"Only, like, a half an hour," Sirius said, glancing at his watch.  
  
"I know what we could do," Remus said slowly.  
  
Lily smiled and James took his eyes off of the passing scenery. "Play a prank on ol' Snapey?" he asked hopefully.   
  
"Yep!" Remus said.  
  
"Why not? All in holiday spirit, of course!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Let's turn him into Santa!" Lily exclaimed.  
  
"And Malfoy and his little girlfriend can be the reindeer!" James said excitedly.  
  
Remus smiled evilly.   
  
"Lily, you take Narcissa," Remus instructed. "Sirius, you get Malfoy, and James can have Snape since that's the hardest Transfiguration to do. I'll take on whoever else is sharing their compartment."  
  
"It'll probably be that girlfriend of Snape's," Sirius said with a laugh.  
  
  
  
"I'll go and get the invisibility cloak," James said. "This is going to be fun!"  
  
"Isn't that girl's name Obtusa, or something like that?" Lily asked.  
  
"Yeah," said Remus. "Did you know that obtuse is a synonym for stupid."  
  
Lily and Sirius were laughing so hard they fell to the floor. James walked in to find them holding each other so they wouldn't fall down.  
  
"What's so funny?" he asked, grinning.  
  
"R-Remus just t-told-" new waves of laughter over took Lily and Sirius.  
  
"I told them that Obtusa, Snape's girlfriend, is almost obtuse which is a synonym for stupid," Remus said casually.  
  
James burst out laughing. Five minutes later Remus was helping them off of the floor. "We only have about ten minutes until the platform."  
  
The mission started.   
  
The group, under the cover of the invisibility cloak, found Snape's compartment, the door was open.  
  
James went first. He muttered something and then hurried back to their compartment. They were only two compartments down.  
  
"Severus? What happened, you're, you're, Santa Claus!" came the voice of Obtusa.   
  
Malfoy and Narcissa were laughing.  
  
Remus went next, followed by Lily, then Sirius. When they were back in their compartment they changed into their muggle clothes.  
  
They were all laughing as the train came to a slow stop.  
  
James spotted Stevens standing near the exit. Lily hugged Remus and Sirius tight.  
  
"See you guys after Christmas," she said. "Si, please be good. No playing football with the chicken this year, okay?"  
  
"How can I?" Sirius asked. "My quarterback is going to the Potter house to play football with his Christmas chicken."  
  
"We'll organize a game with dinner when you guys come over," James said with a chuckle. "See you!"  
  
The ride to James' house took not even a half an hour. Lily stepped out of the back of the limo and stared at the mansion. She always did. She had seen the Potter house many times, but it always had the effect of taking her breath away.  
  
Lily followed James and Stevens. "Is mum or dad home, Jeff?" James asked him. James had made friends with Stevens early on, he was the only servant that James liked.  
  
"No, James," Jeff answered. "Your mum went out late last night with the other car and didn't come back and your dad's at the office."  
  
"Think she's going to come home this time?"  
  
"I can't say, James, I don't rightly know."  
  
James shrugged. He was used to this, it was never a surprise.  
  
He and Lily climbed the many stairs to the third floor. James made a left into his room and Lily, a right.  
  
By the time they were unpacked dinner was ready. The two of them slid down the banister and, surprisingly, landed upright.  
  
Jeff clapped.   
  
"Dinner's ready," he said. "Mr. Potter's home for dinner today."  
  
"Really? Someone cares about their son?" James said. "Oh my GOD!"  
  
Jeff chuckled. "If you need to do any Christmas shopping tonight I'll be up in my room. Just let me know."  
  
"Thanks, Jeff," both James and Lily said.  
  
They made their way through the entrance hall and into the dining room. James was torn. He was excited that someone cared enough to come home, even if it wasn't to see him, but he hated his father even more than Snape and Malfoy put together.  
  
"Oh, snap, I forgot a hair tie," Lily said. "Be right back." She walked out of the room and headed upstairs to find a hair tie.  
  
  
  
"Father," James said, nodding his head at his dad.   
  
"James, didn't we say no more guests?" His fathers words were slurred.   
  
James groaned inwardly. His dad was drunk, James could smell the firewhiskey on his breath, even from a distance.  
  
"I don't recall," James said politely. He was hoping Lily wouldn't come back. He wanted to find someway to block the door, his wand was upstairs.  
  
"DON'T GET SMART WITH ME!" his father yelled. "SHOW SOME RESPECT. YOU CAN'T BRING LITTLE SLUTS INTO THIS HOUSE AND EXPECT ME TO BE OKAY WITH IT!"  
  
James lost his temper. He had never loved his dad, or even liked him for that matter, and he had gone too far. He certainly didn't know Lily and couldn't make that assumption about her.  
  
  
  
"She is not a slut," he hissed.  
  
"Did you just talk back to me?" James was frightened but didn't show it. He had ever seen that look in his father's eyes. "I asked you a question, boy, ANSWER ME!"  
  
"I said," James said a little louder, "Lily's not a slut and you can't say that she is when you don't even know her!"  
  
James' dad snapped.   
  
He hit James...he punched him, and that was the last thing that he remembered.   
  
He blacked out from the blow to the side of his head.  
  
  
  
  
  
Change of POV: Lily's POV  
  
  
  
  
  
Lily opened the door to the dining room. Mr. Potter wasn't there. She looked around for James and spotted him on the floor.  
  
"Holy shit!" she gasped.  
  
James had blood dripping from the side of his head on to the floor beside him. He looked like he was out of it.  
  
"What am I going to do? What the hell am I supposed to do now?" she was muttering. She still had her wand in her pocket and she knew one or two healing spells.  
  
She performed them and wrapped James' head with a ripped piece of table cloth, just in case. "Jeff! He'll know what to do," she said suddenly. She left James' side and was back, panting, within minutes with Jeffery.  
  
"What the hell happened to him?" Jeff asked. He kneeled down next to James and checked his pulse. "Well, he's alive."  
  
"I went upstairs to find a hair tie," Lily explained. "When I came back down I found James on the floor bleeding from the head and Mr. Potter's gone."  
  
"Lily, on the mantle in the foyer there's a pot of Floo Powder. Take only a pinch and throw it into the fire. Contact Dumbledore and tell him we need him at the Potter's house, only stick your head in though."  
  
Lily nodded and followed Jeff's directions. A few minutes later Dumbledore entered the dining room, looking worried, followed by Lily, and Madame Pomfrey brought up the rear.  
  
The nurse set right to work on James. Dumbledore was talking to Jeff for a few moments before turning to Lily, who was staring at James' limp body and wondering what had happened to him.  
  
"Miss Evans?" Dumbledore said. Lily snapped out of her trance and looked at the Professor. "What happened?" he asked.  
  
Lily told him all that she knew.  
  
"Okay, then," Dumbledore said. "We'll be returning him to the Hogwarts Infirmary so that Poppy can look after him. Why don't you go pack up all of yours and James' school things. Jeff can help you. We'll meet you in the hospital wing."  
  
Lily nodded and followed Jeff up the stairs to pack.   
  
  
  
  
  
CHANGE POV: JAMES' POV  
  
  
  
  
  
James opened his eyes. He didn't know where he was. He tried to sit up but his head started to pound and he fell back defeated and let out a long moan.  
  
"James?" a soft voice said sleepily.  
  
"Lils? That you?" James asked groggily.  
  
"Yeah, how you feeling?" she asked.  
  
"Why does my head hurt?" he asked her.  
  
"Oh it still hurts, does it?" she said. "Your dad hit you, punched you in the side of the head. You've been out of it for nearly two weeks. The school will be coming back in about two days."  
  
"We're at Hogwarts?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah, I found you on the dining room floor so Jeff and me contacted Dumbledore and he brought you back here."  
  
"I'm sorry, Lily," James said. He propped himself up on his pillows, despite the throbbing in his head.  
  
"What?" she asked. "You didn't do anything."  
  
"Well, I just figured that I must have ruined your Christmas, you had to stay here anyway."  
  
"It's not your fault, James," she said.   
  
She smiled at him and he felt the warmth go all throughout his body just by this simple gesture.  
  
"Yeah it is," he said. "I could have just kept my mouth shut, but he said that and-"  
  
"Said what?"  
  
"He said, 'You can't bring little sluts into this this house and expect me to be okay with it'. I snapped. He can't call you a slut, I wish I would have had my wand." Then he muttered to himself, "Drunk bastard."  
  
"James, thanks for defending me and all, but you should have kept your mouth shut, at least until he sobered up a bit."  
  
"I couldn't, I just snapped." James found that tears were running down his face.   
  
Lily leaned in and hugged him tightly. Neither of them wanting to let go. Madame Pomfrey walked into the ward the next morning to find the two teenagers asleep in each others' arms.  
  
"Ah, young love, a beautiful thing," she said to herself before exiting quietly and making her way to the headmaster's office.  
  
When James awoke he found that he was alone. He stretched and realized that his head didn't hurt as much. He just sat, thinking about some things. About ten minutes later Lily walked in.  
  
"Morning," she said cheerfully.  
  
"Good morning, Lils."  
  
"How'd you sleep last night, Prongs?" she asked, pecking him on the cheek before sitting on the bed.  
  
"Alright," he said. "I have something for you, by the way." He pulled out a parcel from under his bed. "I snuck out this morning to grab it quick. Late Merry Christmas."  
  
Lily ripped open the wrapping paper and gasped. It was a Nimbus 1500.  
  
"James," she said. "I can't take this, it's the best broom out there, costs a bundle!"  
  
"You have to take it," James protested. "It's my Christmas present for you."  
  
"I know, but I didn't get you anything nearly as great as this."  
  
"I don't care if you got me nothing," James said. "I'm just glad that you're my girlfriend and I'm with you right now."  
  
Lily smiled and said, "Okay then." She bent down and took a wrapped gift out from under his bed. "Here you go, I hope you like it."  
  
James unwrapped his present. Inside was a lot of things. First he found three Forever Quills, they were sugar quills that lasted, well, forever.  
  
Next her found a framed picture of himself and Lily from last year. They were in their pajamas, and soaking wet, playing in the snow. As James was making a snow angel Lily dive bombed him and the picture was of them rolling around in the snow.  
  
At the very bottom of the box were three books. Quidditch Through The Ages, Pranks For Punks (an American Prankster book), and a very thick photo album. James opened it and found pictures of himself, Sirius, Remus, Peter, and Lily. Some were from school, others were over the summer, and some at Hogsmeade or Diagon Ally.  
  
"Lily," James breathed. "Thank you, I love everything."  
  
Lily smiled. "GREAT!" She hopped up and kissed him. "I need to go owl Si and Re to tell them that you woke up. I haven't gotten that done yet. I'll be back in a bit."  
  
"See you later," he said. James was looking through the photo album, most of it was empty, just waiting to be filled.  
  
He made a mental note to buy a wizard camera next time he was in Hogsmeade because he was very eager to fill up the rest of that book with good memories and fun times.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Prongs!" Sirius and Remus came back the day before school started up again. "How're you feeling?"  
  
"I'm fine," James said. "I'm feeling much better."  
  
"You sure?" Remus asked.   
  
James smiled and nodded. "How was your Christmas?"  
  
"It was good," Remus and Sirius chorused. "Oh, we need to give you our presents!"  
  
Remus went first. He handed James an envelope. James opened it and cried, "YOU RULE, MOONY!" It was a gift certificate to Zonko's.  
  
"I know I do." Remus smiled and Sirius handed James a box.  
  
James unwrapped this box an just smiled widely. Sirius bought him a Quidditch tickets to the World Cup this summer. "SIRIUS! THANKS! I THINK I LOVE YOU!"  
  
"I love you too, James, but I think Lily will be pretty mad if you dump her for me," Sirius said.  
  
Everyone shared a laugh and Madame Pomfrey came over to check James' head. When she did she said that he was allowed to return to the Tower that night.  
  
The four sat in front of the fire all night. As the last person in the common room yawned and made their way to bed, Sirius asked what had been on his and Remus' mind since Lily wrote them about James.  
  
"Why did he hit you, James?"  
  
James didn't answer right away. After a moment he told them. "He was drunk and he called Lily a slut. I got pissed and yelled at him and he hit me. He's always been a alcoholic bastard with a temper, but I've never been hit that hard."  
  
"James, do you mean to say that he's hit you before?" Lily asked worriedly.  
  
James didn't say anything.  
  
"James," Remus said, "you can tell us. Nothing's going to happen if you do."  
  
A few tears had started to roll down James' face. The other three stared, James had never cried, at least not in front of Sirius and Remus. Even so, he rarely cried in front of Lily, but he had before.  
  
"Oh my God," Sirius said. "James, what's going on hear."  
  
"I guess I have to tell you now, huh?" James said quietly. "I guess you have sort of a right to know."  
  
Lily moved to James and put her arm around him and held him tight.  
  
"My life isn't as good as it seems from the outside. I hear the guys all talking, wishing they were me, but they shouldn't. If they knew what my life was really like…my mother has never been around, never. My father is a bad alcoholic, when he gets mad he takes it, he, he takes it out on me. Tells me things like 'you were an accident, we never wanted you'. If it weren't for you three I wouldn't be here right now."  
  
"James, you should have told us before," Lily said.   
  
Sirius gave his best friend a tight bear hug.   
  
Remus just sat and took it all in.   
  
After a moment he said, "James, we need to do something about all of this."  
  
"No! Remus, we can't, that's all I need!" James said.  
  
"James, please, you need to go to Dumbledore and tell him. He can help," Sirius said.  
  
James shook his head no.   
  
"James, please listen to them. I don't want this to ever happen again, it has to stop," said Lily.   
  
  
  
James looked into her eyes. They were filled with tears and she looked scared, scared for him. He looked down at the floor. After a few minutes he looked up.  
  
"The only way that could happen is if one of you had a place for me over the summer."  
  
"Don't be stupid, you'd probably all end up at my place anyway, you can live with us," Remus said, slapping him on the back.  
  
James gave a weak smile, "After breakfast, I want to go to bed right now."  
  
They all agreed and said their good nights. Lily and James shared a hug and a kiss before parting for their beds.  
  
  
  
  
  
The next morning at breakfast, an owl landed in front of James. He took his letter and opened it up as the owl took flight.  
  
*Dear James,  
  
I'm sorry. I was drunk, you probably knew that. Your mother told me that I had to write you and apologize. So, I'm sorry. I'll be seeing you on your Easter break when you come home.  
  
Your Father*  
  
James scrunched the letter up in one hand and tried hard not to scream profanity at the man that wasn't even present.  
  
"What's wrong, James?" Sirius asked.  
  
James threw the letter at him.   
  
Sirius took it and read, along with Lily and Remus. When they were done they looked shocked.  
  
"He can't even apologize by himself," James said.   
  
"Don't worry about it, man, just stay here for the Easter holidays," Sirius said. "We'll stay with you."  
  
"Yeah," Remus and Lily agreed.  
  
"Thanks, you guys. What would I do without you?"  
  
"We don't rightly know, Prongs. We don't rightly know," Sirius said with a smile.  
  
  
  
  
  
After breakfast James made his way to the high table to ask Professor Dumbledore if they could meet. Lily, Remus, and Sirius made their way to Charms.   
  
Professor Flitwick was writing notes on the board about the Memory Charm. Lily, who already knew how to do this, wasn't paying attention. Neither was Sirius or Remus. This became apparent to Lily when she received a note.  
  
*What should we do to Snape tonight?-Sirius  
  
Sirius, pay attention!-Lily  
  
Why? You aren't.-Sirius  
  
I know this charm already!-Lily  
  
So do I!-Remus  
  
Can't you just teach me later? This is too boring!-Sirius  
  
Oh, alright.-Lily  
  
:ROLLS EYES:-Remus  
  
HEY!-Sirius  
  
Lets make him sing 'Whenever, Wherever'. You know, that Shakira song?-Lily  
  
I love the way you think!-Sirius  
  
Me too. But we need something more, like he sings it in a really high girly voice!-Remus  
  
Oh! Oh! And he dances like she did in the video!-Sirius  
  
And he gets the same clothes she wore!-Lily  
  
Dinner tonight?-Remus  
  
YES!-Lily and Sirius*  
  
Half way through charms class the bell rung.   
  
"What the hell?" Remus said, checking his watch. "We're only halfway through class. Why's the bell ringing?"  
  
"Back to your common rooms students!" Professor Flitwick squeaked from his pile of books.  
  
Lily and the guys shrugged before heading back to Gryffindor Tower.   
  
"Password?"  
  
"Hello, my lady," Sirius said, bowing. The fat lady giggled. "Treacle Fudge."  
  
The portrait swung open and what looked like the whole of Gryffindor Tower was already there. Lily looked around for James, as did Remus and Sirius, but they couldn't find him.  
  
"Where the heck is James?" Sirius asked.  
  
"I don't know, I'll get the Map and check." Remus ran up the stairs.  
  
"I wonder where he is," Lily said.   
  
Sirius shrugged.   
  
Remus ran down the stairs.   
  
"Guys," he panted. "Not…not…good."  
  
"What is it?" Lily asked.  
  
Remus handed her the map and she looked at it. James was no where to be seen, teachers were running all over the place, and Voldemort was in the Great Hall.  
  
"Oh shit," Lily breathed. "Voldemort."  
  
"What?" Sirius asked, eyes wide. He looked over the map three times, making sure he read every name.  
  
"Oh no," Sirius said. "We need a teacher."  
  
"What are we going to tell them, Si?" Remus asked. "That we have a map of the school enchanted to show everyone in it?"  
  
"We need to do something before Voldemort kills someone!" Sirius protested.  
  
"For once, I think Sirius is right," Lily said. "But how are we going to get a teacher up here?"  
  
"We can try the Summoning Charm," Remus suggested.  
  
"You think that would work, Re?" Sirius asked doubtfully.  
  
"Who's the closest?" Lily asked.  
  
"Um, Flitwick," Remus said, checking the map.  
  
"Perfect," Lily said. She whipped out her wand and said, "Accio Professor Flitwick!"  
  
She then rushed over to the portrait hole and pushed it open. Professor Flitwick came flying in.  
  
"What is the meaning of this?" he squeaked.  
  
"Sorry about that, Professor," Lily said. "But there's a problem."  
  
"Oh, what's wrong, Miss Evans?"  
  
"Well, James is missing and Voldemort is currently in the Great Hall," Remus said hurriedly.  
  
"How do you know-"  
  
"We just do!" Sirius said.  
  
"I'll get Dumbledore," the Professor ran out.  
  
"Oh crap. Oh crap," Lily repeated over and over.  
  
"Where the hell could he be?" Remus asked Sirius.  
  
"I don't know," Sirius said. "What if he's in trouble?"  
  
Sirius sighed.   
  
Lily sat on the couch and stared into the fire.   
  
"Why the hell couldn't he go to Dumbledore last night?" she asked no one in particular.  
  
"He's probably snuck off into Hogsmeade. Don't worry about it, Lils," Sirius said reassuringly, though his smile didn't quite meet his eyes.  
  
The day passed all too slowly for the three friends. Lily couldn't get James out of her mind. She just had this feeling that something was wrong. She knew that something had happened.  
  
At around six, Sirius and Remus were playing chess, trying to get their mind off James. Lily wasn't really watching.  
  
She took another look at the Marauder's Map and gasped.   
  
"Sirius, Remus, LOOK!" she hissed.  
  
  
  
"What is it?" they both hissed as they bent in to look at the map.  
  
Voldemort, followed by hundreds, was leaving the grounds via the Forbidden Forest. Scanning the map they saw the small dot labeled James Potter in the dungeons. It wasn't moving.  
  
"Oh shit!" Sirius said.  
  
Remus, as if reading Lily's mind, ran up the boys' stairs and returned with the invisibility cloak. They ducked into the dorm hall and put it on before carefully exiting the portrait hole.  
  
They made the journey to the dungeons as quickly as possible without making any noise. When James was in sight Lily just threw off the cloak and ran to him. Sirius and Remus followed.  
  
  
  
Lily bent over James. She couldn't tell if he was breathing or not. A lone tear traveled down her cheek as she checked his pulse.  
  
"He's alive!" she said. "Barely though. We need to get him to the hospital wing, now!"  
  
  
"Place a feather weight charm on him and we'll get him up there," Sirius said.   
  
Lily cast the charm.   
  
Sirius picked James up and started running for the hospital wing. Remus followed with the map and Lily brought up the rear with the cloak in her large pants pocket.  
  
They burst into the ward a mere five minutes later, gasping for breath. The nurse looked shocked, as did the teachers that she was tending to. Remus shoved the map in his pocket.  
  
*How are we going to save our asses this time?* Lily asked herself.  
  
"James…is barely…b-breathing," Sirius panted.   
  
The teachers drew a collective gasp and the nurse hurried over and started working on James. "Re, how are we getting out of this one?" Lily hissed to Remus out of the corner of her mouth.  
  
Remus just nodded slightly, indicating that he had a plan. When the nurse had done everything required, she went back to the teachers.  
  
"Lily, Remus, Sirius, would you please go to my office? I need a word." Professor Dumbledore was standing in the doorway.  
  
The three nodded silently and departed. "I will be right with you." Dumbledore entered the wing for a quick word with Madame Pomfrey.  
  
"How the hell are we going to cover our asses this time?" Lily asked worriedly.  
  
"The truth," Remus said evenly.  
  
"But the map-" Sirius started.  
  
"The truth," Remus repeated sternly.  
  
"But it'll be taken from us!" Lily exclaimed.  
  
Remus smiled an all to mischievous smile. "That is why one must always have a backup copy."  
  
As this sunk into Sirius head, Lily exclaimed, "YOU ROCK, RE!"  
  
"A Marauder through and through!" Sirius said.  
  
They gave the password for the gargoyle and entered Dumbledore's office. They waited a few minutes until the headmaster walked in. Lily noticed that he didn't have the twinkle in his eyes.  
  
"Please tell me how and where you found Mr. Potter and why you were where he was," Dumbledore said.   
  
Sirius and Lily left this one up to Remus.   
  
"Well, sir, I guess we need to tell you the entire truth on this one." He pulled out the Marauder's Map and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."  
  
  
The map appeared and Dumbledore gasped. "My word…"  
  
Remus explained the map to Dumbledore, and then told him what happened that day. "We were in the common room and couldn't find James. The entire afternoon he didn't show up on the map. When Lily was checking the map after a while, she saw James on it and we went to him. Voldemort was gone. When we found him we rushed him to the infirmary."  
  
Dumbledore took this all in. After a moment he said, "I will need to confiscate that map, as you might have guessed, Remus."  
  
  
"Yes, sir." Remus handed the map to the Professor.  
  
"Now, go back to your dormitories, you may skip your first class tomorrow and go see James."  
  
"Thank you, Professor," they all said, getting up to leave.  
  
Back in the common room the three breathed a sigh of relief.   
  
"I can't believe that we didn't get a detention for that," Lily said.  
  
"Me neither!" both Sirius and Remus said.  
  
"Anyone as hungry as I am? We haven't eaten since breakfast." Sirius rubbed his stomach.  
  
"Lets go down to the kitchens, we still have the cloak," said Remus.  
  
The three friends made their way down to the kitchens, courtesy of James' invisibility cloak. When they had tickled the pear, they entered and the house elves greeted them somewhat cheerfully.  
  
  
  
"Can we get you anything, sirs and miss?" an elf asked in it's squeaky voice.  
  
"Do you have any refilling plates of sandwiches in here?" Lily asked kindly.  
  
"Just one moment, miss."  
  
In a few seconds the elf was back and he carried a plate with him. "Here you are, sirs and miss. Just tell it what kind of sandwich you want and it will give it to you."  
  
"Thanks a bunch!" the three said. They went back up to the boys' dorm in the Gryffindor Tower.   
  
  
  
  
  
Lily and the boys sat eating different kinds of sandwiches.  
  
"I wonder how James is doing," Lily said. "I hope he's okay. I mean, when we found him…" she trailed off, not wanting to say the words 'nearly dead'.  
  
"I know, Lils," Sirius said. He moved to sit next to her and put his arm around her. "James will be fine. He's a strong boy, he'll pull through."   
  
"Oh shit!" Remus suddenly exclaimed.  
  
"What's wrong, Moony?" Lily asked.  
  
"Tonight's a full moon!" he said. "I need to get out of here and outside!"  
  
"See you later, Moony," both Lily and Sirius said automatically.  
  
"No you won't," Remus said, turning to look them in the eye.  
  
"I don't want to go out while Prongs isn't there. Lily, you aren't big enough to help Sirius if someone comes near us." With that he turned and left the dorm to run for the hospital wing.  
  
"Si, do you mind if I crash in here tonight?" Lily asked after a few moments of silence. "I really don't feel like dealing with Kelly and Lindsay tonight."  
  
"No problem," Sirius said. To Lily's surprise there was no mischievous smile, tone, or glint in the eye.  
  
She knew that Sirius was getting on just as bad as she was.   
  
"Si, I know how you feel," was all Lily needed to say. Sirius scooped her up into a big hug.   
  
  
  
  
  
CHANGE P.O.V. REMUS  
  
  
  
  
  
"Madame Pomfrey!" Remus yelled skidding into the hospital wing.  
  
"Remus, I know he's your friend, but-"   
  
"IT'S A FULL MOON!"  
  
"Oh, dear, I'm sorry. Let me get my cloak."  
  
While Madame Pomfrey went to fetch her cloak, Remus looked outside and saw the moon beginning to show. He felt all too familiar pains all over his body.  
  
*Oh shit, this is NOT good!* he thought.  
  
Remus was growing hair all over and his limbs were growing at a rapid rate. When Madame Pomfrey came back in she saw a full grown werewolf standing there.  
  
She wanted to scream, but training for this kind of thing told her not to. She backed off slowly into her office. Moony had a menacing glint in his eye. When she got into the office she closed the door.  
  
Quick as a flash she disappeared through a secret passage that would bring her to Professor McGonagall's quarters.  
  
Moony snarled at his lost prey. He turned around. The only person in the now locked ward was James Potter. Moony advanced slowly, as if he were making sure James was asleep.   
  
He sniffed the air for James' scent. He was just about to pounce when he heard a voice in his head.   
  
*Remus, don't hurt him. He's your friend, James Potter. It's me, Professor McGonagall.*  
  
The werewolf turned round to see a tabby cat looking at him with a hint of worry in it's eyes.   
  
*Remus, please, just follow me.*  
  
*I was going to attack him wasn't I?* Remus said in his head to the tabby.  
  
*Probably, now come, we need to go to the Shack.*  
  
Moony hopped up from his spot on the floor and followed the tabby cat professor out into the hall where they went through a passageway. In a few moments they were outside. The cat went with him to the Shrieking Shack.  
  
*Thanks a lot, professor.* Moony said.  
  
  
  
The cat nodded it's head and left, locking the door.  
  
  
  
  
  
CHANGE P.O.V. LILY  
  
  
  
  
  
The next morning Lily awoke with a heavy heart. Without waking Sirius up she went to her dorm to have a shower and get dressed. Thankfully, Kelly and Lindsay were still asleep.  
  
After a quick shower, Lily got dressed and headed for the fifth year boys' dorm room. Sirius was awake.   
  
After he got dressed he let Lily in.  
  
"How'd you sleep, Lils?" he asked through fake cheeriness.  
  
"Not too good," replied Lily. "I kept thinking about James and Remus."  
  
"Me too," Sirius said. "Come on, Lets go down to breakfast. We'll go see James afterwards, okay?" He flashed a smile.   
  
Lily couldn't help but smile at him. "Okay lets go."  
  
The pair made their way down to breakfast in a comfortable silence, each lost in their thoughts. Lily snapped out of it when she heard a low voice hiss, "Give it to me, you little bitch!"  
  
She tapped Sirius and mouthed, "Do you hear that?" Sirius listened for a second, then nodded. They took a quick peek around the corner. There were two kids there, Lily knew one of them.  
  
"Excuse me," she said, stepping around the corner. "What's going on here?" Sirius came from behind her to size up the situation.  
  
"Nothing's going on here," said the taller one. "Go away!" he spat.  
  
"Anna, what's going on?" Sirius asked the little second year. Lily had tutored both Anna and Sirius in Charms last year.  
  
Anna glanced at the tall boy as she said quickly, "Nothing's wrong."  
  
"What's your name kid?" Sirius asked the boy.  
  
"None of your business," he spat.  
  
"Anna, who is he?" Lily asked the frightened looking girl. Anna shook her head 'no'. "Okay, what house is he in?"  
  
Before the tall kid could stop her Anna answered. "Slytherin." Anna looked nervously at the boy.  
  
"Fifty points from Slytherin for not cooperating with a prefect and harassing another student," Lily said simply. "Go to breakfast."  
  
The kid walked off grumbling. "Thanks, Lily, Sirius," Anna said.  
  
"No problem," Sirius said with a grin. "Want a piggyback ride?"  
  
"Sure!"  
  
Lily chuckled to herself as Sirius Black got down on all fours to allow the small second year to climb onto his back. "Where are James and Remus?" Anna asked.  
  
"Last night was full moon, so Remus isn't here right now," said Sirius.  
  
"Oh yeah, I forgot about that." Lily smiled at the small child. "So, where's James?"  
  
The two teens were silent for a moment. Then Sirius spoke up. "Well, James is in the hospital wing. He's unconscious and isn't doing too well." He then explained what he knew so far about James' condition to Anna.  
  
  
  
Anna looked at Lily and the back of Sirius' head. "I'm sorry, guys," she said. They entered the Great Hall. "Can I go and see him after classes?"  
  
"Sure," Lily smiled. "how about Si and I take you up after dinner?"  
  
"Okay."  
  
  
  
  
  
"Albus, do my eyes deceive me?" McGonagall asked the headmaster. "Is that Sirius Black carrying a second year on his back."  
  
"It seems so," said Dumbledore with a smile. "He really isn't that bad, Minerva. Badly behaved at times, yes, but he has a huge heart."  
  
  
  
McGonagall smiled as well.   
  
"It seems so, Dumbledore, it seems so."  
  
  
  
  
  
CHANGE P.O.V: MADAME POMFREY  
  
  
  
  
  
*I hope this boy wakes up soon. His friends are so worried about him.* Madame Pomfrey thought to herself as she made her way over to James' bed to check on him.   
  
  
  
*Well, all his vital signs are good, lets just pray that it stays that way.*  
  
  
  
  
  
CHANGE P.O.V. ANNA  
  
  
  
  
  
"Anna, we'll meet you up in the hospital wing after dinner," Lily said. "We need to see to something."  
  
"Okay, Lily. I'll be there."  
  
Lily and Sirius walked out of the Great Hall as Anna sat down to eat her dinner. She took her time and in an hour, rose and set off for the hospital wing.  
  
*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*  
  
"Miss Rays?" said the nurse. "Can I help you?"  
  
"I'm meeting Lily and Sirius here. I want to visit James," said the twelve year old.  
  
"Oh," Madame Pomfrey stood back. "Last bed in the row."  
  
  
  
Anna smiled at the older woman and made her way over to James. She sat down and looked him over. He was still and silent…a little to still.  
  
Anna raised her right hand and put it in front of James' face. She didn't feel any breath. James wasn't breathing.  
  
"MADAME POMFREY!" Anna shrieked. "COME HERE QUICK!"  
  
The nurse rushed over. "What is it, dear?" she asked.  
  
"James stopped breathing!"  
  
Madame Pomfrey took out her wand and Anna started to cry.   
  
While Madame Pomfrey worked she went out into the waiting room. She didn't know what she would tell Lily and Sirius if something bad happened to James. She didn't know quite how to tell them even if he were okay.  
  
About five minutes after Anna's discovery, Lily and Sirius walked into the room and found Anna crying on a chair.  
  
"What's wrong, Anna?" Sirius asked, concerned for his little friend.  
  
"J-James!" was all she could say.  
  
"Shh, sweetie," Lily sat next to her. Sirius put a hand on the girl's back and rubbed it. "What is it?"  
  
"H-he w-wasn't breathing when I-I came in b-before."  
  
Lily and Sirius both paled. "What?" they said in unison.  
  
Madame Pomfrey came in at that moment and announced, "He's okay."  
  
"Oh thank you, God!" all three students exclaimed.  
  
"You may go in for a little while," the nurse said. "You need to go back to your common room by curfew though."  
  
"Thank you so much, Madame Pomfrey," Lily said. She dashed in to see James followed closely by Sirius and Anna.  
  
The three friends stayed until they had fifteen minutes before curfew. They slipped out of the ward and headed for the Fat Lady.  
  
"I'll catch up in a second, Si," Lily said.  
  
Sirius nodded and carried on his conversation with Anna.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
CHANGE P.O.V. LILY  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Lily doubled back and ran for the front doors. In the shadows of the castle she transformed into a cat. Whiskers dashed towards the Whomping Willow and touched the knot to freeze it.  
  
She ran as fast as her little legs would allow and soon found herself facing a door. Unlocking the door she went in and found Remus.  
  
*Remus. It's me, Lily.* Remus sniffed the cat and then seemed to brighten.  
  
*Hi, Lils, what's up?*  
  
*Remus, James has just stopped breathing. Pomfrey got him back up again, but I am really worried about him.*  
  
*Don't worry, he'll be okay, Lily.* Remus said to the cat that was his friend.  
  
  
  
They talked for a few more minutes through their mind until Lily realized she needed to be in the common room, that she had told Sirius she'd catch up with him quickly.   
  
She left Remus and only transformed back into Lily when she was around the bend from the portrait hole.  
  
"Password?"  
  
"Brave Heart."  
  
She climbed into the common room to find Anna and Sirius in a heated game of chess.  
  
"Where'd you go?" Sirius asked as she plopped on the couch to watch, although his gaze never left the chessboard.  
  
"I, er, had to talk to someone."  
  
Sirius nodded.  
  
Anna then said, "Checkmate."  
  
Sirius raised his hands in defeat and looked up. "Why can't I beat anyone at chess?"  
  
"Because everyone is better than you, Si," Lily said with a laugh.  
  
"Well, I'm going to go up to bed, a bit tired," Anna said.  
  
"Night, Anna," both teens said. The girl smiled and waved.  
  
"Want to play a game with me, Si?" Lily asked.  
  
"Will you let me win?"   
  
He made a puppy face.  
  
"No."  
  
"Fair enough. I get black."   
  
An hour later Lily called checkmate and Sirius groaned.   
  
Lily said, "Try playing against a first year, maybe you'll get lucky."  
  
"Very funny," Sirius grumbled. Then he yawned. "I'm going to go to bed, I'll see you in the a.m."  
  
"Night, Sirius."  
  
Sirius went up to bed and Lily decided that she would get some sleep too.  
  
The next day was a Saturday, but Lily woke at an ungodly hour (for a Saturday anyway). By the time she was down in the common room it was eight o'clock. She smiled as she caught sight of Remus sitting in front of the fire.  
  
Lily ran over and jumped over the back of the couch, landing next to Remus.  
  
"Morning, Remy."  
  
"Morning, Lily. How are you holding up?"  
  
Lily sighed. "I don't know anymore, Remus. I think I'm okay, next minute I'm bawling like a baby."  
  
"How about you an me go down to breakfast and then take a trip up to the hospital wing?" Remus offered.  
  
"Alright, I'm guessing you couldn't get Si to wake up?"  
  
"He will not wake up for anything. It is quite a lot of fun to use the cold water on him though." Remus smiled at her.  
  
Lily rolled her eyes and smiled back.   
  
"Lily, Remus!" Anna was coming down the stairs from her dormitory.  
  
"Hello," Remus said with a grin.  
  
"Hey, Remus. How're you feeling?" Anna asked, concernedly.  
  
"I'm feeling great, thanks," Remus replied. "You want to come down to breakfast with me and Lily?"  
  
"Sure, couldn't get Sirius to wake up again?"  
  
Lily and Remus laughed as the three of them climbed out of the common room. "Nope."  
  
Down in the Great Hall, breakfast had already started. Lily, Anna, and Remus slipped into three seats at the Gryffindor table and started to tuck into some eggs and bacon sandwiches.  
  
"What are you doing today, Anna?" Remus asked his small friend.  
  
"Nothing," Anna shrugged.  
  
"What do you usually do with your friends on Saturdays?" he asked after taking a swig of his pumpkin juice.  
  
"Er, I-I don't have any friends, actually."  
  
"What?" Lily asked astounded. "But, but you're so nice, and funny."  
  
"And pretty," Remus added with a smile.  
  
"Why wouldn't anyone want to be your friend?" Lily asked.  
  
"Well, ever since you and the others started to talk to me I've had a hate club."  
  
"Well, Anna, we're your friends," said Remus. "And since we're the only friends that you have, we should start hanging out together more."  
  
"Really?" Anna asked hopefully.  
  
"Of course, silly," Lily said with a laugh. "We're going up to the infirmary to see James. You want to come?"  
  
Anna smiled and nodded. At that moment, Sirius ran into the hall.  
  
"About time sleepy head."   
  
Lily laughed.   
  
Anna and Remus started to laugh.  
  
"What?" Sirius said.  
  
"Might want to look in a mirror next time you get dressed, Si," Remus said through the laughter.  
  
Lily conjured up a mirror and showed Sirius his mismatched outfit. Sirius grinned an Stood on his chair, making sure he got everyone's attention before saying, "Like the new look or not?"  
  
The hall burst into laughter and Sirius sat down next to Lily, who waved her wand and his clothes righted themselves.  
  
After Sirius shoved a few sandwiches in his mouth, he, Remus, Lily, and Anna made their way up to the hospital wing. Lily hoped that he would be awake but didn't count on it.  
  
For the next month, this is what happened. Lily, Remus, Sirius, and Anna would go to breakfast together early, they would hurry to eat. Then they'd rush to the hospital wing to check on James, each having hope that this time he'd be awake. Every time they were disappointed, he was still unconscious. The hardest of all days for Lily was Valentine's Day, which she had spent in the ward.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
One Sunday in late February, Lily wandered down to the lake.   
  
There was a tree that all of them loved to climb, it was a hideout for the friends.   
  
Lily climbed to the highest branch that could support her weight. Sat there, she cried.   
  
"I really wish James would wake up, I miss him so much," she said to herself.  
  
"Room up here for one more?" someone said from a branch below.  
  
"James?"  
  
"Yes?" he said, swinging his legs up so that he could climb up onto her branch.  
  
"You're awake!" She pulled him into a bear hug.  
  
"I'm glad too, but I'd like to breathe please."  
  
"Sorry, I'm just so happy."  
  
James smiled and leaned in for a kiss. As their lips touched they overbalanced and fell off of the branch.   
  
Right before she hit the ground, Lily woke up.  
  
"Bugger, it was only a dream," she grumbled to herself.  
  
"What was only a dream?" Remus asked. They had fallen asleep in the common room the night before.  
  
"I dreamt that James had woken up," Lily said. She felt tears prickling at her eyes and made no effort to hold them at bay.   
  
Remus sat up and gave her a hug.   
  
He hated seeing Lily cry.  
  
"What's going on?" a groggy Sirius Black asked from the floor.  
  
"Nothing," Lily said. "Lets go downstairs," she checked her watch. "It's nearly time for breakfast."  
  
The boys nodded. They each went upstairs to their dorms to shower and get dressed. After a hot shower Lily felt a little better. She got dressed and opened the bathroom door. Neither Lindsay or Kelly were in the room.  
  
Lily shrugged it off and made her way to the second year dorm. She raised her hand to knock, but stopped as she heard Kelly's voice.  
  
"Listen, I don't have the patience to deal with you, Rays. Just put it in Sirius' pumpkin juice or I will make your life a living hell!"  
  
Lily barged in at that moment and, without even thinking, socked Kelly in the face for the second time that year.  
  
"Leave Anna alone," Lily said, her voice shaking.  
  
"Sticking up for your little friend?" Lindsay sneered. "I guess you couldn't find anyone your age who likes you, huh?"   
  
This earned Lindsay a broken nose and black eye.   
  
"Come on, Anna, lets go to breakfast." Lily walked out followed, very closely, by Anna.  
  
"What was that about, Anna?" Lily asked, a little more calmly.  
  
"Kelly wanted me to put a love potion in Sirius' pumpkin juice so he'd be all smitten with her," Anna said. "She's really mean!"  
  
"I know," Lily said. She sighed. "Come on, the boys are waiting for us in the common room.  
  
Anna and Lily met Remus and Sirius in the common room and the four of the made their way to breakfast.   
  
After a quick breakfast, Lily noticed Dumbledore waving at them to come over to him.   
  
Lily, followed by Sirius, Remus, and Anna, walked over to the head table.  
  
"Yes, Professor?" she said.  
  
"Two things," said the headmaster. "Firstly, why did you punch Kelly and Lindsay in the faces, again?" he asked.  
  
Lily explained what she had overheard and what they were saying to her, Then Anna told her bit.  
  
"Very well," said Dumbledore. "Secondly, Mr. Potter has awaken."  
  
Dumbledore smiled wide as the group in front of him whopped and started jumping up and down. "Thank you, Professor!" They all said before they sprinted out of the Great Hall for the infirmary.  
  
Lily ran faster than she had ever ran in her life. She beat the other three to the hospital wing by five minutes. She didn't even stop to talk with Madame Pomfrey. She just went straight for James' bed.  
  
James heard the door slam open. He opened his eyes to and all he saw was a flash of red as his girlfriend took him in a bear hug.  
  
"Oh, James, I can't believe you're awake!" Lily whispered.  
  
"Glad to be back," James whispered back, smiling as Sirius, Remus, and Anna came into the ward, very out of breath.  
  
"James! You're okay!" Anna squealed. Lily let go of James to let the small second year get a hug.  
  
"Hey there, Anna," James said. "You've grown."  
  
"Thanks, you're hair got messier."   
  
The group laughed.   
  
After many hugs, the activity settled. Dumbledore came in about fifteen minutes after Lily's arrival.  
  
"Glad to have you back, Mr. Potter," said the headmaster.  
  
"Glad to be back, sir," James replied.  
  
"James, I know it's a bit early for this, but what exactly happened?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
James explained. "A portkey was placed in Hogwarts, sir. It was a door knob. It transported me somewhere pretty far from here. I don't know exactly where I was, but Voldemort arrived later in the day. The Death Eaters were having fun torturing me while they waited for him though. That was, was horrible." Here, James stopped and took a deep, steadying breath.   
  
Lily squeezed his hand tight. He continued, "When Voldemort came, he was torturing me as well. They gave me my wand back. He was about to cast the Avada Kedavra curse at me when I got the idea that I should try to summon the portkey to see if it still worked. I did and it worked."  
  
As his story came to an end, Lily found herself crying. Looking in her direction, James grinned. "It's alright, Lils, I'm fine now."   
  
As he wiped her eyes for her she smiled.  
  
"Okay, James. I am glad that you're okay," said Dumbledore. "Lily, you have my permission to be up here whenever you want, but you must be in all of your classes."  
  
"Thanks, Professor!" Lily said gratefully.  
  
Dumbledore smiled and left. When he was gone, the group got to talking about, just, stuff. (Author shrugs as she writes the word 'stuff')  
  
By the next day, Madame Pomfrey was completely fed up with the group being in there whenever there wasn't a class. She let James go back to Gryffindor Tower and told him to come up if he felt weak.  
  
Lily and James walked back to the Tower that Sunday together. "You had me thoroughly scared, Potter," she said.  
  
"I'm sorry, Lily," he said, smiling.  
  
"You'd better be," she said in a voice resembling McGonagall's.  
  
The pair laughed the rest of the way to the Fat Lady.  
  
"Password?"  
  
"Rabbit terds," said Lily. James looked at her questioningly. "Sirius."  
  
"Figures."  
  
They walked in to find Sirius and Remus in a heated chess match and Anna taking bets from the other students.  
  
James got on line while Lily sat on the couch to watch.  
  
"Hello, Anna."  
  
"Hey, James, you going to bet something?" Anna asked.  
  
"Five galleons and a pair of my boxers on Remus to win."  
  
"Okay, interesting bet," Anna said as she scribbled it down. Then she called, "All bets locked!"  
  
The match continued for another forty five minutes.  
  
"Check mate!" Sirius said triumphantly. "YES! I WON!"  
  
The Gryffindor house, as a whole, stared wide eyed at Sirius Black as Anna read off his winnings...he had beat Remus two times in a row!  
  
"…and a pair of James' boxers," she finished.  
  
  
  
"WOO HOO! I get James' boxers!"   
  
This caused the entire house to laugh hysterically.  
  
Up in the boys' dorms, Lily and the three boys were counting their winnings. "Brilliant plan," James said. "We'll have enough pranking supplies to last us for a year!"  
  
"This is great!" Lily said. "When are we going to Hogsmeade?"  
  
"We'll go next Friday night, Zonkos is open late on Fridays," said Remus. "I'm going to bed, good night."  
  
  
  
  
  
Before the Marauders knew it, it was the night before they had to leave, or stay, for the Easter holidays.  
  
"I can't believe it's Easter already!" Lily said to Anna. "Are you sure you don't want to come to Sirius' house with us?"  
  
"Yeah, I need to use the library," said Anna. "They pile way to much homework on us during Easter holidays!"  
  
"I couldn't agree with you more," said Sirius from the doorway. "You all packed, Lils?" he asked. "We need you for a second."  
  
"Sure, see you later, Anna."  
  
"See you!"   
  
The small second year went back to her dormitory.  
  
Sirius and Lily walked over to the boys' dorm. "What's up, guys?" Lily asked.  
  
"We're going to need to play a prank on the Slytherins," said Remus.  
  
"Yeah," said James.  
  
"Not too big, but not too small." Sirius looked at Lily hopefully. "Any ideas? We're at a loss!"  
  
Lily thought for a moment. "Dungbombs," she said, simply.  
  
"We've done that…a lot," Remus complained.  
  
"Charm them so the smell doesn't come off for twenty four hours." Lily smiled, mischievously.  
  
"Lils," Sirius said after a few moments. "What the hell would we do without you here?"  
  
"No idea, dear Sirius," Lily said, smiling. "No idea."  
  
Sirius took James' invisibility cloak and snuck into Filch's office to retrieve all of the confiscated   
  
dungbombs. Lily, Remus, and James made small talk while they waited for him to come back.  
  
"Got them!" Sirius said, pulling off the cloak. "Hundreds of them! Most are ours already, though." The others laughed.  
  
  
  
  
  
The next morning, about midway through breakfast, Lily sent her charm to the Slytherin table. The next thing you knew there was a disgusting smell issuing from the Slytherin house. The Marauders even dared to prank on Professor Necktor, Slytherin Head of House, for this one.  
  
Trying to pull disgusted faces, the Marauders didn't burst out laughing. They fled the hall with the rest of the students and only let out their laughter in the safety of the common room.  
  
"What did you four do?" most Gryffindors asked.  
  
All Remus had to say through his gasps was, "Charmed dungbombs." The entire house, even the stricter prefects, burst out laughing.  
  
  
  
  
  
Stepping off of Platform Nine and Three quarters, Sirius spotted his brother at once. "Hey, ROB!" he called.  
  
Robert Black turned and waved at Sirius and his friends. Rob was about six four with black hair tied back in a pony tail. He looked exactly like Sirius, except for the hair.  
  
"Hey, guys," he said. "You ready?"  
  
They all nodded and followed him out to his car: a red corvette convertible.  
  
"How are you doing, Rob?" Lily asked as he started the car up.  
  
"I'm good," said Rob. "Sorry to hear about your mum and dad though."  
  
"Thanks," Lily said. James have her hand a little squeeze and she grinned at him.  
  
"So, how much homework did old McGonagall pile on you guys this year?" Rob asked with a sly smile.  
  
"Too much!" they chorused. Then everyone laughed.  
  
As they sped towards the house, Lily asked, "Did you bring Grace and Kim, Rob?"  
  
"You bet," said Rob. "Little Gracie can't wait to see you, Lils."  
  
"Hey! What about me?" Sirius whined. "I'm the uncle!"  
  
"But I'm the godmother! I'm better."   
  
Sirius stuck his tongue at Lily and she returned the gesture.  
  
"Here we are! Home sweet home, dinner should be ready soon."  
  
Lily climbed out of the car and caught sight of her house. She felt tears prickling the back of her eyes, and she tried hard to hold them back.  
  
"You okay, Lily?" Sirius asked from behind her. He put his hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine," Lily said quickly, turning towards Sirius' house.  
  
"MUM! WE'RE HOOOOME!" Sirius called when they were inside.  
  
Mary Black stepped in from the kitchen. "Hello, everyone. Why don't put you're things in your rooms and come into the kitchen for dinner?"  
  
"Right, mum," Sirius said. "Come on, guys."  
  
Lily went upstairs and unpacked her things. Half an hour later she met up with the boys in Sirius' room and   
  
they went down to the kitchen for dinner.  
  
"How's school?" Mary asked.  
  
"School's okay," Remus said.  
  
"Yeah," agreed Lily. "Only thing is that they give way too much homework."   
  
This comment was met by three nods.  
  
Mary rolled her eyes. The group chatted while they ate. After dinner Sirius and Lily took James and Remus for a walk around the neighborhood.  
  
Sirius looked at his two best friends, holding hands and leaning on one another. He smiled and leaned on Remus while taking hold of his hand.  
  
"Oh, Remy," he said. "I'm cold."  
  
Lily slapped him on the back of the head.  
  
"Shut up, you idiot!"  
  
They laughed.   
  
As they rounded the corner, Lily's eyes fell on her house. The boys were talking and didn't notice the few tears that made their way down Lily's face. She forcefully wiped them away and kept walking forward.  
  
She was nearly dragging James with her at a fast pace. Remus and Sirius followed up the driveway and to Lily's door.  
  
"What's up, Lils?" asked Sirius.  
  
"I need to get some stuff," said Lily as she turned the knob. "Anyone home?" she called, walking in with the boys behind her.  
  
"Kitchen!" someone called back.  
  
Lily went into the kitchen and found her grandmother and Petunia having dinner. "Hi," she said. "Just came by to pick up some stuff."  
  
"Well you can't," said Petunia, stiffly. "Get out now!"  
  
"Whatever," said Lily. She exited the kitchen and went up the stairs to her old room.  
  
"Sirius," she said. "Can you go into my parent's room and get any photos or albums that you can find there please?"  
  
"No problem, Lily," he said.  
  
While Sirius went for the pictures, Lily rummaged in her closet. She pulled out her guitar and a few plastic file folders.  
  
Sirius came back and handed the pictures and albums that he found to Lily. Lily put them in a backpack with the folders as Sirius climbed out of the window.   
  
When he was down, Lily pulled out a sheet from her closet. She tied it to a strap of the backpack and lowered it to Sirius. He untied the bag and Lily pulled the sheet back up and tied the guitar to it before lowering that as well.  
  
"Done this before, Lily?" James asked with a grin.  
  
"All the time," Lily said. "Me and Sirius do this all the time."  
  
With that she climbed out. Remus followed. After he was on the ground, James shrugged before following them down.  
  
  
  
  
  
They went back to Sirius' house and played Exploding Snap for a while. They made their way to bed late that night and, in turn, got up late.  
  
That set the pattern for the holidays.   
  
  
  
  
  
Before the gang knew it, it was time to return to Hogwarts. The OWLs were coming up soon. Lily had the boys studying like crazy. They were not, under any circumstances, allowed out of the castle.   
  
They took OWLs in place of their final exams. All of them passed and Lily came out top in the year.  
  
  
  
  
  
The end of the came in a blur.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: Did you like it? It's forty-four Microsoft Works pages long! Please review. I'll have the summer out soon and then sixth year, than that summer, than seventh year, and maybe a fic that goes beyond seventh, I dunno...please review!  
  
-Kristin- 


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